A retired businessman and his wife, Ketan and Sheetal Swali, died when their light plane crashed in Snowdonia on August 14. The couple, described by neighbors as "the best of neighbours and the kindest of people," were flying to Caernarfon Airport when their rented Piper Warrior vanished from radar.
Ketan Swali, 59, and his wife Sheetal, 55, had recently closed the small family manufacturing business he had run for decades and were looking forward to spending more time in the air. Three years ago, friends had congratulated Mr. Swali on accomplishing his first solo flight.
Coastguards were alerted when the aircraft disappeared from radar around midday on August 14. Following a challenging search, wreckage was discovered in a remote location near Trawsfynydd. Provisional post-mortem examinations indicated that both Mr. and Mrs. Swali died from major impact trauma.
Friends and neighbors in Syston, Leicestershire, where the couple lived, have expressed their grief. Susan Watson, 76, described them as "so kind, so friendly, so helpful and so loving." She added that they were excellent neighbors who would look after her and her husband's bungalow when they were away, and vice versa. Sydney Watson, 78, stated that Mr. Swali was a good man and that the couple was "really, really genuine."
Neighbors knew the couple enjoyed flying and that it was something they did regularly. "It was something they did on a regular basis and something Ketan was looking forward to having recently retired," Mrs. Watson said. She described Mr. Swali as thorough and could not imagine what could have gone wrong.
The aircraft had been rented from Sherwood Flying Club, based at Tatenhill airfield near Burton-on-Trent, Staffordshire. A photograph on the club's Facebook page from July 2023 shows Mr. Swali celebrating his first solo flight.
Mr. Swali had written in a forum post last year that his firm, Arc Euro Trade Ltd, which made machinery such as lathes and employed around five people, was closing the engineering tools and machinery part of the business as he wished to retire. He stated the firm was financially sound.
An inquest hearing in Caernarfon was told that the couple had two daughters. Assistant coroner for North West Wales, Sarah Riley, adjourned the inquest pending a probe by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch, offering her condolences to the family.
